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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Banksy unveils new ‘Valentine’s Day mascara’ mural in Margate

Banksy has unveiled a new Valentine’s Day mural created on a wall in Margate.

The new artwork, shared on the famous street artist’s Instagram page on Tuesday morning, appears to touch on domestic violence.

It depicts a woman dressed as a 1950s housewife, in a checked dress, an apron and yellow rubber gloves.

She appears to be shutting a man inside an old chest freezer, around which the mural has been created. As it lies on its back in front of the piece, the man’s legs can be seen protruding from the end.

Two closer-up images of the woman’s face show she has a black eye and appears to be missing a tooth.

A caption beneath the piece names it ‘Valentine’s day mascara’.

Fans were delighted by the new piece, writing on Instagram “welcome back” and “good to see art from you, Mr Banksy”.

Others praised the elusive artist – famous for using his artwork to highlight current affairs and social injustice – for touching on domestic violence.

One woman wrote: “Genius. Little sad twist though. Happy Valentine’s to anyone who needs it.”

Another wrote: “I think she got the last laugh”.

It is thought to be Banksy’s first public artwork since he unveiled several artworks in war-torn Ukraine in November.

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